An approach toward optimization of the influential growth determinants of opportunistic yeast isolate Pichia guilliermondii

The present study reports statistical optimization of growth conditions of an opportunistic fungal strain Pichia guilliermondii, isolated from the blood of patients suffering from bancroftian filariasis. Seven key determinants, namely, primary inoculums size (%), volume (mL) and pH of media, serum proportion, temperature (°C), incubation time (hr), and agitation speed (rpm) that influence in vitro growth of the pathogen were optimized statistically using response surface methodology (RSM). RSM with seven factors and two-level Box–Behnken design was employed for designing experimental run, prediction of case statistics, suitable exploration of quadratic response surfaces, and constructing a second-order polynomial equation. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that primary inoculums size, volume of culture media, temperature, incubation time, and agitation speed exert most significant influence over fungal growth. The RSM study predicted that optimum fungal growth can be obtained using 10% primary inoculums size in 100 mL culture media with pH 6.0, 6.28% serum, 32.5°C temperature, and 24 hr of incubation, alongside agitation speed at 400 rpm. The desirability of the optimized growth model for P. guilliermondii is 99.123%, which indicated its accuracy and acceptability. Finally, the optimized growth module illustrated in the study could be useful in improving in vitro growth of clinically important P. guilliermondii.     

Fluid mixing and oxygen transfer in cell suspensions ofTaxus chinensis in a novel stirred bioreactor

In high-density plant cell cultures, mixing and mass transfer are two key issues, which should be emphasized for process optimization. In this work, both mixing and oxygen transfer characteristics of cell suspensions ofTaxus chinensis were studied in a new centrifugal impeller bioreactor with a working volume of 1.2 L. The mixing time (t _M) and the volumetric oxygen transfer coefficient (K _L a) under different operational conditions were determined in both tap water and cell suspensions of 100–400 g fresh weight/L (i.e., 5.65–23.1 g DW/L). At an aeration rate of 0.1 L/min,t _M decreased from 10.6s at 30 rpm to 2.89 s at 200 rpm under 100 g FW/L, and from 9.63 s (120 rpm) to 4.05 s (300 rpm) under 400 g FW/L. Compared with the effect of agitation, aeration was less significant to the suspension mixing. At a relatively high agitation speed (e.g., 200 rpm),t _M remained almost the same even though aeration rate was changed from 0.1 to 0.4 L/min. Thet _M value increased slowly from 3.98 to 5.26 s at 120 rpm when the cell density was raised from 100 to 250 g FW/L. A rapid increase of botht _M and the suspension viscosity was observed at a cell density above 300 g FW/L. As expected, theK _L a value increased with an increase of aeration rate and agitation speed, but decreased with an increase of cell density. The quantitative data obtained here are useful to investigate the effect of mixing stress on the cell physiology and metabolism ofTaxus chinensis in the bioreactor. This paper is dedicated by JJZ to his colleague Prof. Jun-Tang Yu on the occasion of his 70 birthday.     

外周血T淋巴细胞亚群流式检测方法的优化及验证

为优化外周血T淋巴细胞亚群流式检测方法,采集小鼠肝素钠抗凝血,用FITC rat anti-mouse CD3、APC rat antimouse CD4和PE rat anti-mouse CD8a荧光抗体进行染色,裂解红细胞,通过流式细胞仪检测各亚类细胞占淋巴细胞百分比。从样本体积(50μL和100μL)、FITC rat anti-mouse CD3抗体的工作浓度(1.25～40.00μg·mL^-1)、APC rat anti-mouse CD4抗体的工作浓度(0.625～20.000μg·mL^-1)、PE rat anti-mouse CD8a抗体的工作浓度(1.25～40.00μg·mL^-1)及红细胞裂解条件(时间和裂解次数)等方面对检测方法进行了优化,并验证方法的精密度(批内差异和批间差异);同时对样品4℃放置24 h、室温放置24 h、染色处理后4℃放置24 h的稳定性进行验证。结果表明,50μL抗凝血中加入终浓度1.25μg·mL^-1FITC rat anti-mouse CD3、1...     

Sorption of Acid Blue 9 Using Hydrilla verticillata Biomass—Optimization,Equilibrium, and Kinetics Studies

In the present study, the parameters, temperature, adsorbent dose, contact time, adsorbent size, and agitation speed were optimized for Acid Blue 9 removal from aqueous medium by Hydrilla verticillata biomass using response surface methodology (RSM). The optimum conditions for maximum removal of Acid Blue 9 from an aqueous solution of 100 mg/L were as follows: temperature 30.63°C, adsorbent dose 2.88 g/L, contact time 180 min, adsorbent size 120 mesh (0.124 mm), and agitation speed 237.39 rpm. At these optimized conditions, batch adsorption experiments were conducted to study the effect of pH and initial dye concentration for the removal of Acid Blue 9 dye. The optimum initial pH and initial dye concentration values for Acid Blue 9 removal were found to be 3.0 and 100 mg/L, respectively. Kinetic and equilibrium studies were carried out for the experimental results. From the kinetic studies it was found that pseudo-second-order kinetics suits the system well. From the equilibrium studies, the Freundlich isotherm fits the data well.     

抑氨菌筛选鉴定、培养条件优化及在鸡粪除臭中的应用

目的筛选能抑制鸡粪中恶臭气体NH3释放的亚硝化、硝化细菌菌株。方法以亚硝化、硝化细菌培养基为筛选培养基筛选菌株,然后将菌株分别以10%(v/m,下同)的接种量接种到鸡粪中,测定其对鸡粪中NH3释放量的影响,从中筛选出可减少NH3释放的菌株。根据菌株的形态特征和16S rDNA序列分析对其进行鉴定。通过自动发酵系统对菌株培养温度、pH、通气量及转速四个因素进行正交优化。结果通过筛选得到两株细菌YF1和YS2,经鉴定分别为假单胞菌属(Pseudomonas sp.)和中华根瘤菌属(Sinorhizobium sp.)。菌株YF1最适培养条件为温度28℃,pH 7.0,通气量5 L/min,转速200 r/min;菌株YS2最适培养条件为温度30℃,pH6.5,通气量5 L/min,转速300 r/min。温度、pH、接种量和通气量对YF1、YS2影响均极显著(P0.01)。YF1和YS2单独按10%剂量接种分别使鸡粪中NH3的释放量降低26.0%和28.4%,而两菌1∶1混合接种可使NH3释放量降低75.6%。结论 YF1和YS2是抑制鸡粪中NH3释放的优良菌株。     

Development of a biosensor for urea assay based on amidase inhibition,using an ion-selective electrode

Abstract

A biosensor for urea has been developed based on the observation that urea is a powerful active-site inhibitor of amidase, which catalyzes the hydrolysis of amides such as acetamide to produce ammonia and the corresponding organic acid. Cell-free extract from Pseudomonas aeruginosa was the source of amidase (acylamide hydrolase, EC 3.5.1.4) which was immobilized on a polyethersulfone membrane in the presence of glutaraldehyde; an ion-selective electrode for ammonium ions was used for biosensor development. Analysis of variance was used for optimization of the biosensor response and showed that 30 μL of cell-free extract containing 7.47 mg protein mL^?1, 2 μL of glutaraldehyde (5%, v/v) and 10 μL of gelatin (15%, w/v) exhibited the highest response. Optimization of other parameters showed that pH 7.2 and 30 min incubation time were optimum for incubation of membranes in urea. The biosensor exhibited a linear response in the range of 4.0–10.0 μM urea, a detection limit of 2.0 μM for urea, a response time of 20 s, a sensitivity of 58.245 % per μM urea and a storage stability of over 4 months. It was successfully used for quantification of urea in samples such as wine and milk; recovery experiments were carried out which revealed an average substrate recovery of 94.9%. The urea analogs hydroxyurea, methylurea and thiourea inhibited amidase activity by about 90%, 10% and 0%, respectively, compared with urea inhibition.     

A novel centrifugal impeller bioreactor. II. Oxygen transfer and power consumption

The effects of the impeller configuration, aeration rate, and agitation speed on oxygen transfer coefficient K(L)a were studied in a newly designed centrifugal impeller bioreactor (5-L). The oxygen transfer rates in the novel bioreactor were also compared with those in a cell-lift bioreactor with comparable dimensions. The cell-lift impeller produced much higher surface oxygen transfer rates than the centrifugal one at an agitation speed over 200 rpm. This result was in good agreement with our observation that the cell-lift impeller produced much higher unfavorable turbulence. In addition, the experiments using granulated agar particles as pseudo plant cells indicated that the K(L)a value decreased steadily with an increase in agar particle concentration, and the centrifugal impeller still demonstrated a larger K(L)a than the cell lift up to a high pseudo cell concentration of 19.5 g dry weight (DW)/L (under 150 rpm and 0.20 vvm) or 22.3 g DW/L (under 200 rpm and 0.20 vvm). Furthermore, the correlation between power number and impeller Reynolds number for both the centrifugal and the cell-lift impellers was successfully obtained, which could be used for predicting the power input required by each impeller. From the results obtained, the centrifugal impeller bioreactor is expected to have great potential in its application to shear-sensitive biological systems.     

Immobilization of oxalate decarboxylase to Eupergit and properties of the immobilized enzyme

Oxalate decarboxylase, an oxalate degradation enzyme used for medical diagnosis and decreasing the oxalate level in the food or paper industry, was covalently immobilized to Eupergit C. Different immobilization parameters, including ratio of enzyme to support, ammonia sulfate concentration, pH, and incubation time, were optimized. Under the condition of enzyme/support ratio at 1:20, pH 9, with 1.5?mol/L (NH(4))(2)SO(4), room temperature, and shaking at 30?rpm for 24?hr, activity recovery of immobilized Oxdc reached 90% with an apparent specific activity of 0.44?U/mg support. The enzymatic properties of immobilized Oxdc were investigated and compared with those of the soluble enzyme. Both shared a similar profile of optimum conditions; the optimum pH and temperature for soluble and immobilized Oxdc were 3.5 and 50°C, respectively. The immobilized enzyme was more stable at lower pH and higher temperatures. The kinetic parameters for soluble and immobilized enzyme were also determined.     

Approach toward an efficient inoculum preparation stage for suspension BHK-21 cell culture

Mammalian cells are the most frequently used hosts for biopharmaceutical proteins manufacturing. Inoculum quality is a key element for establishing an efficient bioconversion process. The main objective in inoculation expansion process is to generate large volume of viable cells in the shortest time. The aim of this paper was to optimize the inoculum preparation stage of baby hamster kidney (BHK)-21 cells for suspension cultures in benchtop bioreactors, by means of a combination of static and agitated culture systems. Critical parameters for static (liquid column height: 5, 10, 15 mm) and agitated (working volume: 35, 50, 65 mL, inoculum volume percentage: 10, 30 % and agitation speed: 25, 60 rpm) cultures were study in T-flask and spinner flask, respectively. The optimal liquid column height was 5 mm for static culture. The maximum viable cell concentration in spinner flask cultures was reached with 50 mL working volume and the inoculum volume percentage was not significant in the range under study (10–30 %) at 25 rpm agitation. Agitation speed at 60 rpm did not change the main kinetic parameters with respect to those observed for 25 rpm. These results allowed for a schedule to produce more than 4 × 10⁹ BHK-21 cells from 4 × 10⁶ cells in 13 day with 1,051 mL culture medium.     

IMMOBILIZATION OF OXALATE DECARBOXYLASE TO EUPERGIT AND PROPERTIES OF THE IMMOBILIZED ENZYME

Oxalate decarboxylase, an oxalate degradation enzyme used for medical diagnosis and decreasing the oxalate level in the food or paper industry, was covalently immobilized to Eupergit C. Different immobilization parameters, including ratio of enzyme to support, ammonia sulfate concentration, pH, and incubation time, were optimized. Under the condition of enzyme/support ratio at 1:20, pH 9, with 1.5 mol/L (NH₄)₂SO₄, room temperature, and shaking at 30 rpm for 24 hr, activity recovery of immobilized Oxdc reached 90% with an apparent specific activity of 0.44 U/mg support. The enzymatic properties of immobilized Oxdc were investigated and compared with those of the soluble enzyme. Both shared a similar profile of optimum conditions; the optimum pH and temperature for soluble and immobilized Oxdc were 3.5 and 50°C, respectively. The immobilized enzyme was more stable at lower pH and higher temperatures. The kinetic parameters for soluble and immobilized enzyme were also determined.     

尖孢镰刀菌生产蒽醌色素的液体发酵条件研究

优化了尖孢镰刀菌液体发酵生产蒽醌类红色素的发酵条件。通过单因素实验和正交优化实验,确定最佳产色素发酵培养基为：可溶性淀粉30％,(NH4)2SO4 3％,MgSO4 0.3％,KH2PO4 4％,pH 6.0。产色素最适培养条件为：初始pH6.0,装液量20％,接种量10％,吐温-80添加量1％,温度28℃,摇床转速200r/min,发酵周期120h。此条件下,色素效价即可达到8.184U/ml,比优化前提高了1.8倍。国内首次对尖孢镰刀菌所产蒽醌色素进行研究,为其进一步应用奠定基础。     

An ultra scale‐down analysis of the recovery by dead‐end centrifugation of human cells for therapy

An ultra scale‐down method is described to determine the response of cells to recovery by dead‐end (batch) centrifugation under commercially defined manufacturing conditions. The key variables studied are the cell suspension hold time prior to centrifugation, the relative centrifugal force (RCF), time of centrifugation, cell pellet resuspension velocities, and number of resuspension passes. The cell critical quality attributes studied are the cell membrane integrity and the presence of selected surface markers. Greater hold times and higher RCF values for longer spin times all led to the increased loss of cell membrane integrity. However, this loss was found to occur during intense cell resuspension rather than the preceding centrifugation stage. Controlled resuspension at low stress conditions below a possible critical stress point led to essentially complete cell recovery even at conditions of extreme centrifugation (e.g., RCF of 10000 g for 30 mins) and long (~2 h) holding times before centrifugation. The susceptibility to cell loss during resuspension under conditions of high stress depended on cell type and the age of cells before centrifugation and the level of matrix crosslinking within the cell pellet as determined by the presence of detachment enzymes or possibly the nature of the resuspension medium. Changes in cell surface markers were significant in some cases but to a lower extent than loss of cell membrane integrity. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2015;112: 997–1011. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Study on the flocculability of the Arthrobacter sp., an actinomycete resuscitated from the VBNC state

A bioflocculant with high flocculating activity, LC13-SF, produced by strain LC13^T which was in a viable but nonculturable (VBNC) state, and which was woken up by Rpf (resuscitation promoting factor), was systematically investigated with regard to its fermentation conditions and flocculating activity. The key parameters influencing the bioflocculant LC13-SF were investigated through measuring the optical density at 660 (OD₆₆₀) of the fermentation liquid and the optical density at 550 (OD₅₅₀) of the centrifugal supernatant. The flocculating efficiency and the Zeta potentials were chosen as the response variables for the study of the flocculating activity. The results showed that the optimal conditions for bioflocculant LC13-SF production were a fermentation time of 72 h, an initial pH of 7.0, a fermentation temperature of 30°C and a shaking speed of 150 r/min. The optimized flocculating process was as follows: a final volume percentage of bioflocculant LC13-SF and 0.5% (w/w) CaCl₂ were 1.5 and 5%, respectively in a 4 g/L Kaolin suspension, and the system pH was adjusted to 8.0. Under these conditions, the flocculating efficiency and the absolute value of the Zeta potential reached 94.83% and 4.37, respectively.     

中国特有植物血水草RAPD反应体系的优化

为建立血水草的RAPD-PCR最佳反应体系,对影响血水草RAPD反应的Mg²⁺、模板DNA、dNTPs、引物浓度和Taq聚合酶用量等因素进行优化。结果表明：25 μL反应体系中含10×Buffer 2.5 μL,1.8 mmol·L^-1 Mg²⁺,2U Taq DNA聚合酶,50 ng模板,0.2 mmol·L^-1 dNTPs,1.6 μmol·L^-1引物。扩增程序为：94℃预变性2 min;预扩增：94℃变性20 s,36℃退火30 s,72℃延伸75 s,5个循环;扩增：94℃变性20 s,40℃退火30 s,72℃延伸60 s,40个循环;72℃保温20 min,4℃保存。所建立的血水草RAPD-PCR反应体系具有标记位点清晰、反应系统稳定、检测多态性能力强、重复性好等特点,可以较好地应用于血水草的遗传多样性分析研究。     

Chemiluminescence method based on the KIO4−K2CO3−Mn2+ reaction for rapid and sensitive determination of forchlorfenuron in dried fruit

Forchlorfenuron is a low-toxic phenylurea plant growth regulator. Excessive intake of forchlorfenuron can lead to metabolic disorders of the matrix and be harmful to human health. The chemiluminescence intensity of the KIO₄–K₂CO₃–Mn²⁺ reaction decreased in the presence of forchlorfenuron. Based on this result, a rapid and sensitive chemiluminescence method was established to determine forchlorfenuron by combining it with a batch injection static device. The injection speed, injection volume and reagent concentration of the forchlorfenuron–KIO₄–K₂CO₃–Mn²⁺ chemiluminescence reaction were optimized. Under these optimized conditions, the linear range of the method was 1.0–200.0 μg/L, and the limit of detection was 0.29 μg/L (S/N = 3). The chemiluminescence method for the determination of forchlorfenuron could be completed in 10 s. The method was applied to detect the residual forchlorfenuron in dried fruit samples, and the results are consistent with high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. This method has the advantages of high sensitivity, rapid response, less reagent consumption, and convenient operation. It will provide a new perspective for chemiluminescence for the rapid and sensitive determination of forchlorfenuron in various complex samples.     

Incubation and hatch management: consequences for bone mineralization in Cobb 500 meat chickens

From ~35 days of age fast growing meat chickens spend extended periods sitting or lying and less time standing. In a fast-feathering parent line lower early incubation temperatures which delayed chick hatch time, improved bone ash and extended their standing time. This incubation study assessed the consequences of incubation temperatures, hatch time and chick management at hatch/take off on femoral bone ash (BA) in Cobb 500 meat chickens. Embryos were incubated under either Control (between 37.8°C and 38.2°C egg shell temperature (EST)) or a Slow start (from 37.2°C at sett (the start of incubation), reaching 37.8°C EST at day 13 incubation), temperatures. Hatched chicks were identified at 492 h (20.5 days of incubation – classified as early (E)) or, between >492 and ⩽516 h (>20.5 and ⩽21.5 days of incubation – classified as late (L)), from setting. The E hatch chicks were allocated across three post-hatch treatments; treatment 1: E hatch chicks that were sampled E at 492 h from setting; treatment 2: E hatch chicks that were fed for a further 24 h in a floorpen before being sampled L at 516 h from setting; treatment 3: E hatch chicks that spent a further 24 h in the incubator before being sampled L at 516 h from setting. All L hatch chicks formed one treatment group which was sampled L at 516 h (i.e. L hatch chicks sampled L). It is not possible to sample L hatching chicks E hence this treatment is absent from the experimental design. Slow start incubation resulted in a higher total hatch percentage with a greater proportion of chicks hatching L, compared with the Control incubation. The L hatching chicks had significantly higher BA than the E hatching chicks. Of the E hatching chicks, those sampled both E and L had significantly lower BA than E hatching chicks fed for 24 h before L sampling. The E hatch, fed and sampled L chicks had the numerically highest BA, which was not significantly different from the BA of the L hatching chicks sampled L These results demonstrate that BA at hatch can be improved, either by extending the incubation period through a Slow start incubation profile, inducing L hatch, or alternatively, via the prompt provision of feed to E hatching chicks.     

Optimization,equilibrium and kinetics studies on sorption of Acid Blue 9 using brown marine algae <Emphasis Type="Italic">Turbinaria conoides</Emphasis>

In the present study, the parameters, temperature, adsorbent dose, contact time, adsorbent size and agitation speed were optimized for Acid Blue 9 removal from aqueous medium by using response surface methodology (RSM). The optimum conditions for maximum removal of Acid Blue 9 from an aqueous solution of 100 mg/l were found as follows: temperature (33°C), adsorbent dose (3 g/l), contact time (225 min), adsorbent size (85 mesh (0.177 mm)) and agitation speed (226 rpm). At these optimized conditions, batch adsorption experiments were conducted to study the effect of pH and initial dye concentration for the removal Acid Blue 9 dye. Kinetic and equilibrium studies were carried out for the experimental results. From the kinetic studies it was found that pseudo second order model suits the system well. From the equilibrium studies, the Freundlich and Redlich-Peterson isotherm fit the data well.     

Enhanced Production of carboxymethylcellulase by a marine bacterium,Bacillus velezensis A-68, by using rice hulls in pilot-scale bioreactor under optimized conditions for dissolved oxygen

The optimal conditions for the production of carboxymethylcellulase (CMCase) by Bacillus velezensis A-68 at a flask scale have been previously reported. In this study, the parameters involved in dissolved oxygen in 7 and 100 L bioreactors were optimized for the pilot-scale production of CMCase. The optimal agitation speed and aeration rate for cell growth of B. velezensis A-68 were 323 rpm and 1.46 vvm in a 7 L bioreactor, whereas those for the production of CMCase were 380 rpm and 0.54 vvm, respectively. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) implied that the highly significant factor for cell growth was the aeration rate, whereas that for the production of CMCase was the agitation speed. The optimal inner pressures for cell growth and the production of CMCase by B. velezensis A-68 in a 100 L bioreactor were 0.00 and 0.04 MPa, respectively. The maximal production of CMCase in a 100 L bioreactor under optimized conditions using rice hulls was 108.1 U/ml, which was 1.8 times higher than that at a flask scale under previously optimized conditions.     

Enhancement of ribitol production during fermentation of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Trichosporonoides oedocephalis</Emphasis> ATCC 16958 by optimizing the medium and altering agitation strategies

To maximize the productivity of ribitol, which is an important starting material for the production of one expensive rare sugar, L-ribose, the effects of culture medium and agitation speed on cell growth as well as on the productivity of ribitol were thoroughly investigated in a 7 L fermentor. The maximum volumetric productivity, 0.322 g/L/h of ribitol, were obtained at an initial glucose concentration of 200 g/L in a batch culture. Based on the optimum glucose concentration, the ribitol yield conversed from glucose was up to 0.193 g/g when 1% yeast extract was used as a nitrogen source. When the agitation speed was maintained at 200 rpm, the ribitol concentration of 38.60 g/L was collected after 120 h of cultivation time. Additionally, the scheme of two-phase agitation and glucose infusion was employed. To begin, in the first 24 h of fermentation, a high agitation rate at 350 rpm and the initial glucose concentration of 50 g/L were applied, and the biomass concentration of 25.50 g/L was achieved at 36 h of incubation; whereas this value was observed until 60 h in the former batch fermentation methods. Then, in the second phase, with the agitation speed reduced to 150 rpm and the infusion amount of glucose controlled at 150 g/L, the yield of ribitol reached to 65.00 g/L in two-phase agitation fermentation and was 1.68 fold of that obtained in one-stage batch fermentation. To our knowledge, this study first demonstrates its significant effectiveness in improving ribitol production with the application of Trichosporonoides oedocephalis ATCC 16958.     

Optimization of carotenoid production by Umbelopsis ramanniana

Umbelopsis ramanniana was investigated to increase carotenoid production. Nine different carbon sources and six different nitrogen sources were evaluated for the maximum carotenoid production. The most effective nitrogen and carbon sources were KNO₃ and lactose, respectively. Then, the optimization of medium components for enhancement of carotenoid production by Umbelopsis ramanniana was achieved using Plackett–Burman design. Box–Behnken response surface methodology was applied to further optimize carotenoid and biomass production. Carbon to nitrogen ratio, lactose concentration, and shaking speed were studied as variables in Box–Behnken design. The optimum conditions for carotenoid and biomass production were determined as 32.42 g/L of lactose concentration, 20:1 of carbon to nitrogen ratio, and shaking speed of 130 rpm. The maximum carotenoid and biomass production under optimized conditions were 1141 μg/L (β-carotene-Eq) and 13.14 g/L, respectively. When compared to the control fermentation, carotenoid, and biomass production were increased by about 2 and 1.3 folds, respectively.